Tintin and Alph-art (Advs. of Tintin S) [Import] [Paperback]

Herge (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 94 pages
• Publisher: Methuen young books (November 1990)
• ISBN-10: 0951279920
• ISBN-13: 978-0951279922
• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 8.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Hergé, one of the most famous Belgians in the world, was a comics writer and artist. The internationally successful Adventures of Tintin are his most well-known and beloved works. They have been translated into 38 different languages and have inspired such legends as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. He wrote and illustrated for "The Adventures of Tintin" until his death in 1983.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

48 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "H" for Herge and Haddock!, February 5, 2007

By 

General Breadbasket - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tintin and Alph-Art (Hardcover)

Being a big fan of Tintin when I was growing up, I wanted to check out everything. Thought I'd read all the stories, but I'd heard about "Tintin and Alph-Art", which at the time was in a blue hardcover with a rough picture of Tintin on a ladder. This particular edition (gold) was published in 2004, as part of Tintin's 75th anniversary. Both editions are a collection of sketches Herge was preparing for the 24th Tintin adventure, but he died in 1983 before he could finish the story or colour and ink it in. It's presented like a script, with pictures of the pencil drawings along side, some significant details blown up. Was put off by the fact it was incomplete and rough, but I gave it a go, and I quite like it. Very personal, I thought.

Tintin has a lot of contacts, so does his friend Captain Haddock. Bianca Castafiore wants to visit Marlinspike Hall again, and so does Prince Abdullah the trickster. Haddock almost runs into Bianca on the street, so he hides in an art gallery, and ends up being cornered by Bianca. He buys a "H" made by a famous artist there, "H" for Haddock. It's Alph-Art, PersonALph-Art to be exact. Many don't understand it, Haddock is frustrated all the more by it. Meanwhile, a man at the gallery is killed, and Tintin gets on the case...

What happens? It doesn't end, though there are some sketches in the back where Herge considers what he wants to do. God bless you, Georges "Herge" Remi.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars graduate-level Tintin, August 30, 2009

By 

Haik Sahakian - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tintin and Alph-Art (The Adventures of Tintin: Original Classic) (Paperback)

A fascinating and adult Tintin book, well worth reading for Tintin fans. Tintin takes on art forgers, and Herge takes on fake art lovers. As other commenters have said it's very interesting to see the process behind the making of a Tintin book.

Herge spends the first 10 pages re-introducing all the main characters from past books and having them interact with each other. These introductory pages, despite being mostly plot-less, are great fun to read. I think this is because as you get older the things most interesting from childhood books like Tintin, Asterix, and The Lord of the Rings, are not the plots but how the characters act. How Rastopopulous will always return to being evil for example, or the shamelessness of Alcazar.

If you're into Tintin because of its action, this book might not be fun. Castafiore again is central to what annoys Herge, and generally this book is about fakes. Here fakes are people who like the idea of themselves being into art rather than liking art itself. It's funny and interesting, and more like watching the TV show Absolutely Fabulous than reading other Tintin books.

The book continues the cynicism of Picaros and Castafiore, and the way he mocks some of the characters is more obvious than in the other books. This is probably the sort of thing that would have been removed over rewrites and editing, which he unfortunately wasn't able to do.

Everyone is taken in with the Alph-Art, including the Captain who buys one. When Tintin is in trouble, it's either Snowy or luck that saves him. It's not a very hopeful book, but a funny and interesting one.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Art (or Alph-Art) for Tintinophiles to relish, November 29, 2007

By 

R. Medzoyan (Lebanon, PA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tintin and Alph-Art (Hardcover)

If you enjoy reading & re-reading Tintin books like other people enjoy looking at fine art or listening to their favorite composer, this book, with it's beautiful layout is for you. In its incomplete state it feels as genuine and enjoyable as any of the existing classics. A must have!